The present invention relates to an ink-jet recording apparatus for forming an image on a recording medium such as a plain paper, an OHP paper and the like by jetting ink from nozzles of a print head.
As one of output devices for a computer, a workstation and the like, a recording apparatus of an ink-jet type for forming an image on a recording medium such as a recording paper and the like by jetting ink is known. The recording apparatus of an ink-jet type is usually provided with a print head having nozzles for jetting ink formed in it, a carriage having this print head mounted on it and going and returning in specific directions, and a recording medium feeder for feeding a recording medium in a direction (direction of feeding a recording medium) perpendicular to the specific directions.
When forming an image on a recording medium, the apparatus stops temporarily the recording medium being fed by a recording medium feeder and jets ink from nozzles on the basis of an image signal having image information as making a carriage go and return in the above-mentioned specific directions. By this, an image for one band is formed on an image forming area (band area) of the recording medium facing the outlets (ink outlets) of nozzles. After this, it feeds and stops the recording medium by the width of one band and again jets ink from the nozzles on the basis of an image signal as making the carriage go and return in the above-mentioned specific directions. By this, an image is formed on a new image forming area (band area) of the recording medium. An image is formed on the recording medium by repeating such an operation.
An image forming apparatus jetting ink like an ink-jet recording apparatus as described above repeats an operation of making a record for a nozzle width (one band) of a print head and then feeding a recording medium by a nozzle width and again making a record for the nozzle width. By the way, a recording medium feeder has a specific tolerance in accuracy in a machining or assembling process. Due to this, an actual feed for one band may be larger or smaller than a predetermined feed. When an actual feed of a recording medium for one band is larger, a dot gap portion appears in a joint between bands, and when it is smaller, a dot overlapped portion occurs.
And the nozzle width of a print head also may be larger or smaller than the feed of a recording medium for one band due to a tolerance in a machining process. In this case also, therefore, a dot gap portion or a dot overlapped portion appears in a joint between bands.
Due to this, up to now a user has adjusted the feed of a recording medium using an adjustment pattern or the like each time he/she replaces a print head.
However, it is a troublesome work to a user to confirm an adjustment pattern and adjust the feed of a recording medium, and further it is not easy for a user to make an accurate feed adjustment and this makes a cause for deterioration in image quality due to a poor adjustment.
The present invention has been performed in consideration of the above circumstances, and an object of the invention is to provide an ink-jet recording apparatus capable of automatically adjusting the feed of a recording medium without troubling a user.
In order to attain the above object, an ink-jet recording apparatus according to the present invention is an ink-jet recording apparatus which forms an image on a recording medium by repeating an operation of recording an image by jetting ink from a plurality of nozzles arranged in a print head as moving the print head along the recording medium and, after making a record for one band, feeding the recording medium by a specific distance by means of a recording medium feeding means and recording an image for the next one band, said ink-jet recording apparatus being provided with an adjustment image forming means for forming at least two adjustment images for one band by means of at least one nozzle disposed at both end portions out of nozzles arranged in said print head, a nozzle width detecting means for detecting the nozzle width of said print head on the basis of information of two adjustment images in the same band printed by said adjustment image forming means, and a compensating means for performing a compensation for a predetermined feed for one band of the recording medium on the basis of said detected nozzle width of the print head.
And an ink-jet recording apparatus according to the present invention is an ink-jet recording apparatus which forms an image on a recording medium by repeating an operation of recording an image by jetting ink from a plurality of nozzles arranged in a print head as moving the print head along the recording medium and, after making a record for one band, feeding the recording medium by a specific distance by means of a recording medium feeding means and recording an image for the next one band, said ink-jet recording apparatus being provided with an adjustment image forming means for forming one adjustment image for each band of a plurality of bands by means of some nozzles of said print head, a feed detecting means for detecting an actual feed of the recording medium on the basis of said adjustment images formed on adjacent bands, and a compensating means for performing a compensation for a predetermined feed for one band of the recording medium on the basis of said detected actual feed.
And an ink-jet recording apparatus according to the present invention is an ink-jet recording apparatus which forms an image on a recording medium by repeating an operation of recording an image by jetting ink from a plurality of nozzles arranged in a print head as moving the print head along the recording medium and, after making a record for one band, feeding the recording medium by a specific distance by means of a recording medium feeding means and recording an image for the next one band, said ink-jet recording apparatus being provided with an adjustment image forming means for forming at least two adjustment images for one band by means of at least one nozzle disposed at both end portions out of nozzles arranged in said print head, a nozzle width detecting means for detecting the nozzle width of said print head on the basis of information of two adjustment images in the same band printed by said adjustment image forming means, a feed detecting means for detecting an actual feed of the recording medium on the basis of information of either one adjustment image out of said adjustment images and an adjustment image printed in its adjacent band, and a compensating means for performing a compensation for a predetermined feed for one band of the recording medium on the basis of said detected nozzle width of the print head and said actual feed.
And an ink-jet recording apparatus according to the present invention is an ink-jet recording apparatus which forms an image on a recording medium by repeating an operation of recording an image by jetting ink from a plurality of nozzles arranged in a print head as moving the print head along the recording medium and, after making a record for one band, feeding the recording medium by a specific distance by means of a recording medium feeding means and recording an image for the next one band, said ink-jet recording apparatus being provided with an adjustment image forming means for forming two adjustment images for each band of a plurality of bands by means of at least one nozzle disposed at both end portions out of nozzles arranged in said print head, a detecting means for detecting an adjustment image formed on said recording medium by said adjustment image forming means and issuing a detection signal, a nozzle width detecting means for detecting the nozzle width of said print head by detecting said two adjustment images printed in the same band by means of said detecting means and measuring the distance between the two adjustment images as feeding the recording medium by means of said recording medium feeding means, a feed detecting means for detecting an actual feed for one band on the basis of adjustment images printed in adjacent bands by either one end portion out of said both end portions, said adjustment images being detected by said detecting means as feeding the recording medium by means of said recording medium feeding means, and a compensating means for performing a compensation for a predetermined feed for one band of the recording medium on the basis of said detected nozzle width of the print head and said actual feed.